Joseph a



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. A. LOMBAS.

MACHINE FOR MANUFACTURING AND BLEAGHING SUGAR. No. 3 5,616;

nted June 28,- 1887.

avwe'wltoz v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH A. LOMBAS, OF LOOKPORT, LOUISIANA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TOPHLEGTE R. MELANQON, OF SAME PLACE.

VIEWS.

-MACHINE FOR MANUFACTURING AND BLEACHING SUGAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 365,616, dated June 28,1887.

Q Application filed March 10, 1887. Serial No. 230.378. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOSEPH A. LOMBAS, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Lockport, in the parish of La Fourche' and State ofLouisiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machinesfor Manufacturing and Bleaching Sugar; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,which form a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is alongitudinal vertical section of my improved machine for manufacturingand bleaching sugar. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional View of the same,through the plane indicated by the broken line as x in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 isa plan or top view of the machine with the arched top part or coverremoved.

Fig. 4 is a section through the casing which incloses the fan-wheel orbucket-wheel. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the outside of themachine; and Fig. 6 is a detail View of the tubular slotted shaft uponwhich the revolving drum orcylinder is mounted, showing also theswiveled steam-pipe for connecting said tubular shaft with thesteam-supply when desired.

Likeletters of reference denote corresponding parts in all the figures.

My invention has relation to that class of machines which are used forbleaching the sugar as it comes from the coolers 5? and it consists inthe construction and combination of parts of the improved machine, whichwill be hereinafter more fully described and claimed. 7

In the accompanying two sheets of drawings, the letter A designates theoutside casing of the machine,which has an arched top, B, pro: videdwith an air-outlet,C, and a hinged cover, D, adapted to be swung back,so as to rest against the air-pipe or any other suitable support, asindicated in dotted lines. The lower part of the box or casing A'is'provided with a jacket, E, forminga chamber, F, surrounding the casingon allsides and extending under its bottom part, as clearly shown in thesectional Upon one side of the casing A is another box or casing, G,which, forms a steam-tight box for the fan-wheel or bucket-wheel H, thefans or buckets of which are so disposed that they will receive and beacted upon by a jet of steam entering the casing through the steamnozzleI. The central shaft, J, of the fanwheel coincides with the tubularcentral shaft, K, of a revolving drum or cylinder, L, made offinelyperforated sheet metal, fine wiregauze, or any other suitablematerial. The tubular shaft K of this drum is provided with twolongitudinal slits or narrow slots, M M, extending from end toend withinthe cylinder, and the other end of central shaft, K, is boxed inbearings in that side of the casing A in such a manner that the swiveledhead N of the steam-pipe 0 may be connected to the tubular shaft atwill. Said steam-pipe O is provided below its swiveled head withastopcock or faucet, P, so that the steam may be shut off during theoperation of connecting or disconnecting the swiveled hcad N with thetubular shaft K.

The steam by which my machine is operated is fed to it through the mainsteam-pipe Q,

one end of which is connected with a boiler,

the exhaust from asteam-engine, or any other source of a steam-supply,while its other end terminates, as we have seen, in the steamnozzle I,which enters the fan-box G, and revolves the fan-wheel within the same.Another steam-pipe, R, forms an outlet or ex- 'haust from the fan-box,conducting the steam into-the steam-chamber F, so as to thoroughly heatthe contents of the box by steam. This last-named steam-pipe R has abranch pipe, S, which communicates with pipe 0, the several pipes beingprovided at suitable points with proper stop-cocks, valves, or faucetsfor regulating or shutting off the supply of steam. The bottom of thesteam-chamber F is provided with a pipe, T, for carrying off the waterof condensation and excess of steam.

The revolving drum or cylinder L is provided with a door, V, throughwhich it is filled with sugar in the form or at the stage in which thiscomes from the so-called Fcoolers, and

'in one of the heads of the cylinder is another door, U, which registerswith a door or slide, U, in the casing A, and through these two ICOdoors U and U the sugar, after undergoing the bleaching process in thecylinder, may be withdrawn by the use of scrapers and other suit ableimplements. The cylinder L is further provided with two or more wings orflanges, X, extending from end to end, and the use of which will behereinafter set forth.

The entire machine is mounted at a proper height upon suitable supports,so as to admit of the insertion of molasses-pans underneath it, adaptedto receive the fluid molasses through the outlet Y in the bottom of thecasing A.

Having thus fully described the construclion of my machinein its variousparts, lshall now describe the operation of the same, which is asfollows: As has been already stated, the sugar, after it is taken fromthe coolers, is placed within the drum or cylinder L until the same isfull, when the door V is closed. The steam is then turned on, whichcauses the fanwheel to revolve rapidly, so as to rotate the drum orcylinder with a speed of about one thousand revolutions per minute, moreor less. At the same time, or at the beginning of the bleaching process,the swiveled head N of the steam-pipe O S is connected with the tubularslitted shaft K, and the stop-cock Pis opened, so that steam will enterthe tubular shaft and escape in opposite directions through the slits MM in the same. After the contents of the cylinder have becomesuffieiently. moistened and heated by this steam-jet to cause thecrystals of sugar to adhere together steam isagain shut off by closingthe stop-cock P, and by the rapid revolutions of the foraminated drum orcylinder L the molasses and other coloringmatter contained in the sugaris expelled through the fine apertures in the cylinder. This process ofexpelling the molasses from the grains of sugar is further facilitatedby the wings or flanges X upon the outside of the cylinder, which, bythe rapid revolutions of the latter, expel the air from the interior ofthe casing A, so as to form a partial vacuum within the same, theexpelled air escaping through the outlet 0 in the arched cover.

The steam being fed continuously through the pipe R to the steam-jacketE F causes the sides and bottom of the casing A to be thoroughly heated,so as to cook and thicken the molasses as it escapes from the revolvingcylinder and is collected in the bottom of the casing A. By making thecover of this casing A arched, as shown, the molasses, which is thrownupon this cover by the rapid revolutions of the cylinder, Will flow ordrip from this cover down into the casing, and be collected at thebottom of the same, where it is subjected to the cooking process. Thedegree of heat in the bottom of the casing may readily be regulated bymeans of a suitably constructed faucet or valve 011 pipe 1%. I

By this machine and process the sugar within the drum is bleached veryrapidly, and as the cylinder is rotated,proferably by means of steam,which, if desired, may be the all parts of the exterior box.

waste steam or exhaust-steam from an engine running the cane-mill, orany other machinery, it will be seen that the whole process of bleachingby my machine may be reduced to a minimum of cost. The same steam whichoperates the fan-wheel by which the cylinder is revolved serves to cookthe molasses which escapes from the cylinder and collects in the bottomof the casing within which the cylinder is mounted and revolves, and byproperly grading the heat of the molasses-receptacle in the lower partof the casing the molasses may be brought to the proper consistency forgrannlating into sugar in the coolers without any intermediate step orprocess, after which it is ready for feeding into the cylinder again tobe bleached and form merchautable bleached sugar. Thus it will be seenthat I not only bleach the sugar rapidly and thoroughly, but that-Ihave, by the use of my improved machine, hcreinbofore described, reducedthe cost of manufacturing and bleaching sugar to a minimum.

\Vhenever it is desired to clean out the cylinder and the other parts ofthe machine after the sugar and molasses have been removed from thesame, this may readily be done by turning on the steam, so that steamwill pervade the interior of the cylinder, as well as By then openingthe faucet or pipe Ythe water of condensation containing the dissolvedsugar andimpurities may be drawn off, leaving the machine perfectlyclean. 'When it is desired to dry the machine after such cleaning, thesteam may be turned off again by turning the swivel-head N away from itsconnection with the tubular shaft, when by the revolutions of thecylinder, owing to its fans or wings X, the cold' air which is suckedthrough the tubular shaft into the machine will be thoroughly agitatedwithin the casing A, and then expelled through the air-outlet O.

It is obvious that the revolving cylinder may be revolved by means of apulley and belting, gear-wheels, friction-wheels, or any other of thewell-known mechanical appliances for producing a rotary motion, withoutdeparting from that part of my invention; but on the score of economy,as well as for the other reasons stated in my specification, I prefor torotate the cylinder by means of a fanwhecl rotated by a jet of steam, ashereinbefore described.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent of the United States 1. The combination of the casingcontaining the revolving cylinder, the steam-jacket enveloping the lowerpart of said casing, the foraminated cylinder revolving within thecasing-and provided with two or more longitudinal exterior flanges, thebox containing the fan-wheel and provided with an inlet and outlet forsteam, the fan-wheel or bucket-wheel inside of said box, and the centralshaft of the IlO cylinder connected to the shaft of the fanwheel so asto revolve with the same, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of the cylindrical drum or cylinder, the tubularshaft slitted longitudinally on opposite sides within the same, thefan-wheel or bucket-wheel whereby said cylinder is revolved, and asteam-pipe adapted to be connected or disconnected at will with thetubular cylinder-shaft, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination of the casing containing the revolving cylinder, thesteamtight fan-box, the steam-inlet to said box, the steam outlet orpipe leading fromvsaid box to the steam-jacket, the steam-jacketenveloping the lower part of the casing within which the cylinderrevolves, and the branch pipe leading from the last-named steam-pipe toa swiveled forms a molasses-receptacle, the molasses-outlet in thebottom of said casing, the revolving cylinder arranged within the casingand provided with longitudinal exterior wings or flanges, the arched topor cover provided with a hinged part or section, and the air-outlet inthe arched cover, through which the air inside of the casing may beexpelled by the rapid revolution of the flanged cylinder, substantiallyas set forth.

5. In combination with the casing A, provided with a steam-heatedmolasses-receptacle in its bottom part, the revolving cylinder providedwith a central tubular shaft slitted longitudinally from end to endwithin the cylinder between the heads of the same, and provided withexterior longitudinal wings or flanges, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereuntoaflixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOSEPH A. LOMBAS.

\Vitnesses:

LoUIs BAGGER, AUGUST PETERSON.

